Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac rhythm disturbance in the US, with an estimated prevalence of 2.7-6.1 million persons in 2010.
Objective: This study evaluates the progression of daily hospitalization costs among non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) patients treated with anticoagulant therapy.
Methods: A claims analysis was conducted with Premier Perspective Comparative Hospital Database records from January 2009-March 2013. Patients of 18 years or older who were diagnosed with NVAF and used anticoagulant therapy were studied. Treatment patterns and mean daily costs of hospitalization per patient as well as total costs of hospitalization were reported. Comparisons of mean daily costs with those of the previous day were presented to identify statistical cost differences between hospitalization days.
Results: A total of 375,560 patients were identified; 67,017 with AF as admitting/primary diagnosis, and 308,543 with AF as a secondary diagnosis. The mean age of the overall population, primary AF diagnosis cohort, and secondary AF diagnosis cohort was 73.8, 67.9, and 75.0 years, while their proportion of females was 46.3%, 45.6%, and 46.5%, respectively. The mean length of stay was 6.8 days, 3.7 days, and 7.5 days for the overall population, the primary AF diagnosis cohort, and the secondary AF diagnosis cohort, respectively. For all cohorts, mean daily costs stabilized on the third day (overall population: $2103; primary AF diagnosis cohort: $1505; secondary AF diagnosis cohort: $2208).
Limitations: Claims data may have contained inaccuracies or omissions in coded procedures, diagnoses, or pharmacy claims.
Conclusion: The study showed that daily hospitalization costs for NVAF patients stabilized on the third day of hospitalization and that any reduction or prolongation in hospital length of stay could have a significant impact on the cost burden associated with AF.
Keywords: Atrial fibrillation; Daily costs; Hospitalization.